Café Totem to open new gig venue and launch record label

on 25th February 2020 at 3:08 pm

The team behind Sheffield live music hotspot Café Totem are collaborating with recently opened events space Sidney&Matilda on a new gig spot, set to open in a few weeks’ time.

The subterranean venue, which will be situated in the basement of the Matilda Street gallery and bar, will initially operate as a gig and events space. Refurb work started early last month and is expected to be completed for the inaugural gig on 14 March, where South Yorkshire six-piece The Losing Touch will take to the stage.

In a further bid to help promote up-and-coming talent, Café Totem will be launching their own self-titled record label. The first release, a vinyl issue from Chesterfield band The Levi’s, has been pressed and printed in Sheffield and will be released on 11 April. The band will be playing a Sheffield launch show on that date where physical copies will be available.

Café Totem owner Paul Tuffs told Exposed: “These days, ‘A & R’ in the traditional sense doesn’t really exist. Labels used to pick up bands, develop them, and get the band and the music out there. Nowadays bands are expected to do that themselves and be a fully-fledged product with 1,000 people showing up to gigs before potential investors seem to be interested. There seems to be a bit of a gap between the hard-working and gifted people we are working with daily at Cafe Totem, and the outlets for where they can progress to with their talents. Hopefully we can help with that step up – get some proper records out, a bit of national radio play, hook the acts up with national agents and help them to tour venues around the UK.”